Teachers lash out at Liberals after public reprimand

TORONTO - A proposed wage freeze by the cash-strapped Liberals isn't going over well with some of their biggest supporters, in what may be a sign of trouble ahead for broader talks between the province and its public sector workers.

The Elementary Teachers' Federation lashed out at the government Thursday for publicly chastising the union after it walked away from a voluntary process to help guide upcoming negotiations.

A group representing Ontario's doctors, meanwhile, expressed concern over the freeze they say could leave them with 16 per cent less pay. That calculation is based on increases they had expected to receive in return for doing extra work.

ETFO president Sam Hammond said he was frustrated and disappointed with the tone of the talks, adding he will not be bullied into a proposal that includes wage freezes and compensation rollbacks.

He said many of his 76,000 members supported the Liberals in last fall's election because the party had worked to bring labour peace back to the public sector after years of strife, and they now feel betrayed.

"On October the 7th, I woke up and my members woke up and we were living in a completely different world, with a different group of people who say they continue to respect my members, but that is in fact not the case," he said.

His comments come after Education Minister Laurel Broten reprimanded the union Monday for walking away from a discussion table that allows teacher and staff unions as well as trustee associations to discuss issues and come up with a framework to take into local collective bargaining.

She also sent a letter to all 72 school boards Wednesday, saying if elementary teachers went straight to local bargaining, they would have to accept whatever framework deal is worked out at the provincial table.

Hammond called the letter "blatant interference" in the collective bargaining process and said the minister's attitude and her "provocative and unprecedented" comments showed a lack of respect for the talks and the teachers.

He also indicated his union would not return to province-wide discussions unless the government addressed its concerns.

"Bullying behaviour and threats to legislate are no way to demonstrate respect for teachers or the collective bargaining process," Hammond said.

"The government proposal removes working conditions that have been in place for decades. (It) is an attack on women, an attack on unions and an attack on public sector workers."

Broten called the remarks disappointing, saying she'd hoped ETFO would be announcing a return to the provincial discussion table.

She urged teachers and parents of elementary students to "reach out to Mr. Hammond directly to ask him to reconsider."

"This is the first provincial discussion table that we are having with our partners in education following the recession," said Broten.

"Families in Ontario have been through a challenging time and we are asking teachers to do their part to work with us to protect the gains that we made."

Health Minister Deb Matthews also held a news conference Thursday to dispute a newsletter the Ontario Medical Association sent to its members to discuss the implications of the proposed budget.

She dismissed suggestions that she was trying to pick a fight with doctors by addressing the matter publicly while in negotiations, just days after Broten reprimanded the elementary teachers' union.

"It's setting the record straight," said Matthews.

"They claim that we're making cuts to health care, substantial cuts. That is not true."

Since the Liberals came to power, she added, doctor compensation has nearly doubled and they now have an average salary of $362,000.

The OMA called the move unusual, "given that we continue to work closely with the government to achieve an agreement."

Its analysis of the budget's impact, the OMA added, made sure not to include any mention of negotiations.

NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said she was surprised by the approach the government was taking in its discussions with the unions.

"If you want to have a respectful and a good conversation, one that's based on mutual respect, then you don't call people out in the media on it," she said.

"Everybody knows that it's going to be a tough round of negotiations (but) the best place to get these things hammered out is at the negotiating table."

Progressive Conservative critic Peter Shurman said the Liberals needed to be honest about where they stood.

"What the unions understand about our party versus the Liberal government of (Premier) Dalton McGuinty is they know where they stand with us. McGuinty is mealy-mouthed on this and on everything else," he said.

"Tim Hudak and the PC caucus have said we need two years of breathing room, we need a legislated wage freeze. Unions may not like that, but they understand it."